WITH her 2026 season off to a blazing start, the Philippines’ Alex Eala is once again set to lean on passionate crowd support when she faces her former doubles partner, Croatian Petra Marcinko in the second round of the ASB Classic in Auckland on Thursday at 8 a.m. (Philippine time).
Fresh from a confidence-boosting first-round upset of Olympic silver medalist Donna Vekic, Eala showcased both form and composure as she opened the new season, feeding off the energy of a predominantly Filipino crowd at the Manuka Doctor Center Court.
“If there’s one thing I learned in 2025, it’s that home is the people and not the place,” Eala said after grinding out a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Vekic in a gruelling two-hour and 40-minute encounter.
The win impressed fans based mostly in Auckland, who rallied behind the world No. 53 as she outlasted Vekic, the player set to be the top seed at the upcoming Philippine Open Women Tennis WTA-125 Championships later this month.
Seeded fourth in Auckland, Eala is expected to present a stern test for Marcinko, particularly with her improved net game and growing maturity under pressure — qualities that make her the favored player heading into the match.
Marcinko, also 20, advanced to the second round after surviving a tough three-set battle against Camila Osorio, 6-4, 0-6, 7-6(2).
A former world No. 1 junior, the Croatian is coming off a breakthrough 2025 season in which she captured her first professional title at a WTA 125-level tournament in Rome. Her game is anchored on strong baseline play and versatility on both hard and clay courts.
Although Eala and Marcinko have never met in a singles match, the two are familiar with each other’s games. They competed against one another during their junior days and last faced off as opponents in the 2021 French Open girls’ doubles quarterfinals.
In that match, Eala teamed up with Oksana Selekhmeteva to defeat Marcinko and partner Natalia Szabanin.
They were also partners once, at the W80 Poitiers event in 2022, where they reached the quarterfinals. The duo opened their campaign with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Yuliya Hatouka and Iryna Shymanovich before falling to Czech pair Miriam Kolodziejova and Marketa Vondrousova in the second round.
Should Eala advance, she will move on to the quarterfinals against the winner of the match between fifth seed Magda Linette of Poland and Italy’s Elisabetta Cocciaretto.
Linette earlier eliminated tennis legend Venus Williams in a three-set first-round duel, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.
Elsewhere in the tournament, third seed Iva Jovic has already secured a quarterfinal berth after defeating Czech Sarah Bejlek, 7-6(7-3), 6-4, while Francesca Jones fought back to edge Austria’s Sinja Kraus, 1-6, 6-4, 6-1.
